Hi everyone! My name is Natalie. I’m NY born and raised, but Florida has been my home for the last 10 years. It’s very surreal to acknowledge that so much time has passed since I have left my childhood home and embarked onto this stage in my life. I went to UCF for my undergrad and decided to call Orlando my home after graduating. I work as a Technical Writer close to downtown and I live in a sunny, cozy apartment with my partner. (My cat is a big fan of this place, as well!)
I am also a figure skater! This was a hobby I took on after graduating college. It was my childhood dream to skate, and thought that the train has left the station a long time ago. How wrong I was! So many adults learn to figure skate, and I have met an incredibly supportive group of people who are all in it together! My goal is to enter into a more competitive skating scene, rather than simply performing at my home rink. I’ve also played tennis and did MMA, all on a competitive level so I feel like this is the next step in my sport. But, at the end of the day, skating brings me so much joy!
I also really love baking with sourdough. I made a sourdough starter last year ( a very common quarantine activity) and began making endless loaves with it. I make one every week to have breakfast with, it’s really amazing! On top of that, I’ve made sourdough waffles, buscuits, bagels, and crackers. The possibilities are endless!
It was very subtle and casual mentioning you are involved in competitive MMA. I was caught off guard by that. Huge transition from figure skating. How on earth did you get into that? I am super curious about your path into the sport. What does that life look like? Even though we have a professional hockey team, I never paused to consider individuals who are interested in figure skating. Where would someone free skate in Floria? Is it one of those hobbies you can only engage with during certain times of the year? That is incredibly unique, and I am sure an absolute gag to the native Floridians you meet.
Hi, Natalie! I have to say that I have always wanted to do figure skating, since it’s my favorite Winter Olympics sport. I used to live in the Atlanta area, and my daily commute took one of the public ice skating rinks. I always wanted to try to learn to skate, so it’s so amazing to hear someone learning to do this after childhood. How do you just decide to do this? And how do you get into it? It’s an amazing thing, how you are going so in depth with these many different and varied interests… including baking! What an amazingly busy time you’ve had in the last ten years!
Hello, Natalie! My sister also took part in figure skating when she was younger but has since dropped it. It’s amazing to hear one that is older got into figure skating, I always assume it grows from pursuing it during childhood. How are you liking living in Orlando? I’ve had friends at UCF and always visited the area, I definitely see myself living there one day maybe. Cooking is something that I never got into so I applaud everyone who can.